S&W Archive

Deadly Delves: Reign of Ruin (OSR) This module from Jon Brazer Enterprise’s „Deadly Delve“-series for experienced groups clocks in at 34 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page SRD, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 30 pages of content. It should be noted that the pdf comes with an extra-pdf that contains properly-sized, big versions of the maps – these are key-less and generally player-friendly – with one exception: There is a “S” denoting a secret door left on one of them. As you can glean from the cover, the OSR-rule-set employed in this version of the module would be Frog God Games’ Swords & Wizardry. We get both ascending and descending AC-values. This […]

The Lost Lands: Bard’s Gate (PFRPG/5e/OSR) This colossal TOME clocks in at 535 pages of content, 1 page front cover, 2 pages editorial/introduction, 1 page advertisement/product checklist, 3 pages of ToC, 2 pages of SRD, 1 page obituaries, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 524 pages of content. Yeah, I know. You expected Northlands Saga first. Well, while I was digging through THAT massive tome, I was asked by several people to cover this monster first. So I listened, put Northlands Saga on the back-burner (its review should hit site early 2017) and instead started devouring this massive tome. So consider seeing this first to be basically me listening to the vox populi. Ahem. Let that page-count […]

Adventures in the Borderland Provinces This massive hardcover clocks in at 166 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC/product overview, 2 pages of SRD, 1 page of back cover, leaving us with 160 pages of pure adventure…so let’s take a look! This book was moved up in my review-queue due to me receiving a print copy for the purpose of a fair and critical review. “Welcome to the Borderlands. You’ll probably die here.” – Ari Marmell’s first sentence of the introduction of this book is pretty much amazing…and it makes clear from the get-go that this book provides old-school modules, in the slogan of FGG: “Modules worth winning!” – i.e. challenging, hard modules that […]

The Lost Lands: Borderland Provinces (PFRPG/OSR (S&W)/D&D 5e) This massive book clocks in at 269 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 1 page advertisement, 2 pages of SRD, 1 page back cover, leaving us with a colossal 262 pages of content, so let’s take a look! This book was moved up in my review-queue due to me receiving a print copy for the purpose of a fair and unbiased review. All right, so we have been to the Sundered Kingdoms and taken in all the sights and cults…but this is something different. While situated in the adjacent region to aforementioned adventure-collection, we actually have a massive setting sourcebook. As such, the tome begins […]

Cults of the Sundered Kingdoms (PFRPG/OSR) This HUGE AP/setting-supplement clocks in at a massive 437 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 3 pages of ToC, 3 pages of SRD, 1 page back cover, leaving us with pretty ridiculous 428 pages of content, so let’s take a look! All right, we begin this huge book by basically taking a glimpse at the region of the Sundered Kingdoms – wait, that’s not the right way to describe it: The war-and calamity-torn Sunderlands receive a massive, stunningly detailed and well-written gazetteer that clocks in at 32 pages – from discussions on the local technology-level to area by area breakdowns of settlements and the like, we get a tremendous amount of […]

Cults of the Sundered Kingdoms Player’s Guide The Player’s Guide for Frog God Games’ massive Cults of the Sundered Kingdoms-book clocks in at 18 pages, 1 page front cover,1 page editorial, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 15 pages of content, so let’s take a look! This player’s guide is very much interesting in its format – we begin each section with a paragraph of italics, excerpts from the memoires of fabled rogue Titus the Grey, while the main meat of each respective section elaborating on the fluffy bit of text before. Beyond a hex-sporting overview map of the lands, the pdf further elaborates on the diverse ethnicities of the region, with gorgeous b/w-artworks – from the Erskaeloi […]

Cyclopean Deeps Volume II The second tome of Matt Finch’s massive subterranean sandbox clocks in at 250 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 2 pages of SRD, 1 page back cover, leaving us with a massive 244 pages of content, so let’s take a look! Well, before we do, let me reiterate for a second what this is and what it means: Well, on the obvious side, this is the second part of the massive Cyclopean Deeps-mega-adventure-sandbox, which, per default, is situated even below the dungeon of Rappan Athuk in the Lost Lands campaign setting – but, quite frankly, there is no place in any given campaign setting you conceivably couldn’t plug this into […]

The Lost City of Barakus This massive mega-adventure clocks in at 176 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 2 pages of SRD, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 170 pages of adventure, so let’s take a look! This being an adventure-review, the following contains SPOILERS. Potential players should instead read the Player’s Guide and/or jump to the conclusion. … .. . All right, so in case you’re wondering: This is the update of the classic, Ennie-award winning campaign supplement/mega-adventure. The basics are as follows: We have a massive city, Endhome; we have a vast stretch of wilderness surrounding it. The players are here. Go. This is pretty much the textbook definition of a […]

The Lost City of Barakus Player’s Guide This book clocks in at 18 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 2 pages of advertisement and 1 page back cover, leaving us with 13 pages of content, so let’s take a look! All right, so let’s get this right out of the way – this one will be brief – why? Because this is a player’s guide and it’s the school of book that is all about the fluff: We thus begin this player’s guide with the PCs entering the city of Endhome – a massive settlement and one of the key locations of the massive “Lost City of Barakus”-mega-adventure. As befitting of people arriving at such a place, […]

The Sword of Air The massive mega-adventure clocks in at 522 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 1 page SRD, 3 pages of obituary-slots (this is FGG we’re talking about) and 1 page back cover, leaving us with 514 pages of content, so let’s dive in… …but wait, before we do, let me reiterate something: This is not simply a massive module, this is a linchpin, a relic finally realized. For as long as I’ve been reading Necromancer Games (and later, Frog God Games-modules), I’ve seen those tantalizing hints, time and again, supplemented by this nasty, trademark “Coming Soon.” Anticipation continued to build up – for years. When FGG was created, published Slumbering Tsar, […]

Quests of Doom – Adventures Worth Winning This massive book clocks in at 312 pages, not including the covers. Of these pages, 1 is reserved for notes, 1 for the editorial, 1 for the ToC and two for the SRD, leaving us with o less than 307 pages of content, so let’s take a look! But before we dive into the matter at hand, let us first define what this book actually is – a kind of celebration of a series that was nicked in its bloom due to various reasons – I’m, of course, talking about “Demons & Devils” and “Vampires & Liches”, the two module compilations released back in the day by Necromancer Games for 3:X. In […]

Dungeonlands III – Palace of the Lich Queen This massive mega-adventure clocks in at 220 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 3 pages of SRD, 1 page advertisement, 1 page back cover, leaving us a massive 212 pages of content, so let’s take a look at this! This review was chosen as a prioritized review and moved up my reviewing queue at the request of my patreons. Furthermore, I received a hardcover copy of this book for the expressive purpose of running it and providing a fair, unbiased review. Wait, there’s one more thing – after I ripped Tomb of the Lich Queen, the first part of the trilogy, a new one, why […]

Cyclopean Deeps Vol. I The first book of the two-part Cyclopean Deeps-Saga clocks in at 198 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 2 pages of SRD, 1 page back cover, leaving us with a massive 192 pages of content, so let’s check this out, shall we? So, let’s, for now, process as spoiler-free as possible: Do you remember the Dungeoneer’s Survival Guide released for 2nd edition (1e AD&D, if you count that way…)? It’s a timeless classic indeed and showcases a significant component of what I consider flawed with most modern underdark/underworld modules. Let me describe it from this venue – have you ever been spelunking? There is an appeal to the hobby that […]

The Lost Lands – Stoneheart Valley This massive collection of modules clocks in at 192 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 1 page SRD, 11 pages of advertisements, leaving us with 177 pages of content, so let’s take a look! This pdf kicks in with a blast from the past for me – a discussion on the upcoming Lost Lands setting and how different places in the world implied by all Necromancer Games/Frog God Games modules and supplements. If you’re like me, this is damn interesting…but let me go back for a second. When 3rd edition came around back in the day, I was kind of skeptical – but then again, after seeing […]

Hex Crawl Chronicles: The Golden Meadows This installment of the HCC-series clocks in at 51 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 2 pages of SRD, leaving us with 46 pages of content, so let’s take a look! This being a Hex Crawl Chronicle-installment, this module represents a combination of supplement and adventure hooks for a massive toolbox a given DM can develop – a massive sandbox in the truest sense. Thus, the following review cannot hope to contain all of the various things going on within these pages and thus, I will endeavor to instead provide a broad overview of what can be found herein. Thus, the following review contains SPOILERS. Potential players […]

Broken Earth Campaign Setting This massive tome clocks in at 195 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 1 page SRD, leaving us with 191 pages of content, so let’s take a look! First of all – what is Broken Earth? the easy answer would be that it is a post-nuclear campaign setting for Pathfinder, set in an Allotopia (an alternate reality of our own world for non-literature mayors) – this means that no magic is assumed to exist per se, though adding in rare magic would be no issue at all. Now the book kicks off with a vast array of crunch – from new races (ape-men and synthetic humanoids) and then receive […]

Rappan Athuk Expansions Volume I This massive book of expansion-levels for Rappan Athuk clocks in at 165 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC,1 page back cover, 2 pages of SRD, leaving us with 159 pages of content, so let’s take a look… …but before, let me say one thing – this review is my Razor Coast. This review crashed and burned (!!!) times, with all data gone; Once on my laptop, once due to my mobile HD being stolen and once due to my desktop PC’s HD crashing. I’ve literally written this review 3 times, only to have it crash before I had the chance to back it up. So let’s get this posted […]

Bill Webb’s Book of Dirty Tricks This book for the mean DM is 82 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 2 pages of SRD, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 74 pages of content, so let’s take a look! So…Bill Webb has somewhat of a reputation for not only being FGG’s mastermind, but also for being a capable and deadly DM – one I didn’t yet have the honor to play with, but from what I’ve heard – wow. And this book, well, it contains some of his nastiest tricks – which makes for an interesting read, so let’s see if even jaded DMs like your truly can draw some neat tricks […]

Hex Crawl Chronicles: The Troll Hills This installment of the Hex Crawl Chronicle-series clocks in at a massive 48 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 2 pages SRD, 2 pages blank, leaving us with 41 pages of content, so let’s take a look! As always with modules, the following contains SPOILERS. Potential players should jump to the conclusion. All right, still here? Let’s go! First of all – the hex-crawl map to explore this time around spans two massive pages and depicts mostly mountainous terrain with hills, cut through by rivers. The population of this rather…hostile area can be summed up by belonging to 3 ethnicities – the descendants of the once proud […]

Heart of the Razor This expansion anthology of 4 adventures to enhance Razor Coast clocks in at 162 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 3 pages of SRD, 1 page ToC, 2 pages char-sheet, 1 page advertisement, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 152 pages of content, so let’s take a look, shall we? This being a review of an adventure-anthology, the following contains SPOILERS. Potential players should jump to the conclusion. All right, still here? First of the adventures would be Richard Pett’s “Angry Waters” for 10th level characters – which could be summed up in the words “Quest for Eldorado,” at least on a superficial level. The PCs are recruited by one […]

Razor Coast 546 pages, 1 page front cover (by Wayne Reynolds), 1 page editorial, 3 pages of editorial, 1 page ToC, 1 page dedication, 5 pages of advertisement, 1 page back cover. That leaves 534 pages. 534. Pages. It’s been a long time since Razor Coast has been released and there’s a reason my review took this long. First of all, let me preface this with a disclaimer: I can’t, by any means, be truly neutral regarding Razor Coast. I just can’t. you see, there would be no Endzeitgeist without this book. It was Razor Coast that made me excited enough about a book to actually end my online abstinence and register at Sinister Adventures back in the day. I […]

Freebooter’s Guide to the Razor Coast This player’s guide for Razor Coast is 98 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 2 pages of SRD, 1 page advertisement, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 92 pages of content, so let’s take a look, shall we? We kick off the Freebooter’s Guide with an overview of the races and their respective roles in Razor Coast – including rather the central conflict between the pirateish settlers and the Tulita, the indigenous people of the Razor Coast. A lot of flavor is devoted to depicting these ethnicities, but we also get new races, two to be precise: The first would be the Dajobasu, Tulita cursed (or blessed) by the […]

Northland Saga IV – Blood on the Snow The fourth installment of the Northlands-Saga-series is 28 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 1 page SRD and 1 page advertisement, leaving us with 23 pages of content, so let’s take a look, shall we? This being an adventure-review, the following contains SPOILERS. Potential players should jump to the conclusion. Still here? The area of Estinfird in the Northlands is depicted in lavish detail regarding its infra-structure and mindset – considered rather provincial by the jarls of the Northlands, this area is a true frontier among frontiers, where men are truly free and not even the yoke of jarls reaches. The geographic area by […]

Hex Crawl Chronicles: The Pirate Coast The fifth installment by John M. Stater’s massive Hex Crawl Chronicles-series is a massive 60 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC,3 pages SRD, leaving us with a massive 54 pages of content – at the low price-point an excellent bang-for-buck ratio! This being an adventure-review, the following contains SPOILERS. Potential players should jump to the conclusion. All right, still here? Much like the fourth installment, we get two full pages of hexes to crawl through, though approximately a third of them are made up by the sea. As with other Hex Crawl Chronicles, it should be noted that this is a wilderness sandbox, where PCs journey […]

Against Tsathogga This module is 15 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 2 pages of SRD and 1 page advertisement, leaving us with 9 pages of content, so let’s take a look, shall we? This being an adventure-review, the following contains SPOILERS. Potential players should jump to the conclusion. All right, still here? Well, DMs, this is one of the modules that can work well as a one-shot or a campaign’s end/darkest moment prior to the epic final stretch Intended for PCs of level 16+. Why? Because the module unabashedly states that it’s intended as a pretense to use the massive Center Stage Tsathogga-mini. so yeah, the climax of this module may […]

Hex Crawl Classics: Shattered Empire This installment of John M. Stater’s Hex Crawl-series is 52 long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC, 2 ½ pages of SRD, leaving us with 46 ½ pages of content, so let’s take a look! This being an adventure-sandbox, the following contains SPOILERS. Potential players may wish to jump to the conclusion. When Emperor Brodred passed away, he did suspect that trouble would follow – but not the extent. His daughters, the princesses Petal, Peahen and Pearl started immediately quarreling. And now, the whole empire is falling into all-out anarchy – both lavishly-mapped pages of hex-crawling areas of the empire provided. Hence, we also start the pdf with an […]

One Night Stands: Curse of the Shadowhold This pdf is 24 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC,1 page SRD, 4 pages of advertisement, leaving us with only 16 pages of content – not much, but let’s see whether the module holds up! This being a review of an adventure, the following contains SPOILERS. Potential players may wish to jump to the conclusion. All right, still here? The module begins when the PCs, in the border-town Nerimar, manage to save an elven ranger named Sarim Oakleaf from some thugs – he has journeyed to Nerimar to request aid for a particularly insular elven enclave located in a notoriously shadowy, dark forest. Following […]